Akasa Pilots accuse airline's trainers of bias

New Delhi: A group of Akasa Air pilots are accusing the airline's trainers of indulging in favouritism, alleging that pilots with limited experience or with a history of safety violations are being promoted while deserving ones are being failed. The airline has denied the allegations.

In a letter to civil aviation minister Ram Mohan Naidu, the pilots have sought a probe into the airline's training practices by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) and enforcement of rules. ET has seen a copy of the letter. The pilots have also met the minister along with officials from DGCA.

In a statement, Akasa Air termed the allegations as "baseless and untrue."


"Our commitment to employee centricity is at the heart of everything we do. Our monthly employee survey reveals that pilots, among all employee groups, have consistently reported the highest levels of job satisfaction, highlighting the effectiveness of our supportive culture," said a spokesperson for the budget airline.

She said 324 pilots have joined Akasa since October 2023. "During this same period, we have recorded an annualised attrition of less than 1%,"

Senior DGCA officials said they are investigating the matter and have sought a response from the airline on the issues raised by the pilots.

Last year, Akasa Air had taken pilots to court after they had resigned to join another airline without serving the mandatory notice period. The airline subsequently dropped the case.

The allegations come at a time when the airline is raising fresh capital and has signed a non-binding term sheet with Premji Invest and the family office of Manipal group owner Ranjan Pai.

The pilots named Floyd Gracious, vice president, operations, at Akasa, saying that the "favouritism and bias" is happening at his behest.

"The primary cause of these issues lies in the airline's management, notably under Captain Floyd Gracious and his associates. He is indulging in divisive politics and mismanagement, which continue to erode trust and morale within the industry," the pilots wrote in the letter.

Gracious, a seasoned aviation professional, earlier led flight operations at Jet Airways, and has been instrumental in the airline's steady growth.

After starting in August 2021, Akasa was able to exploit a Covid-induced drop in aircraft rentals and easy availability of pilots and cabin crew to add 25 aircraft.